Controlling Post Birth Control Pill Acne

There are lots of ways to treat acne breakouts, such as with topical skincare products, pills, and even treatments in a dermatologist’s office. Amongst the pills, some birth control pills can control acne completely, and a few, like Ortho Tri-Cyclen, are even FDA approved for treating acne. But if you’re taking an acne friendly birth control pill, and you decide to stop it, you risk a major acne breakout. Today I’ll tell you how to treat it if it happens to you.

Stopping birth control pills can cause major acne breakouts because the extra estrogens in the pill partially suppress your androgens, which are the hormones that cause excess oil production… and excess oil production is the root cause of acne. So stopping the Pill causes oil production to rapidly ramp up. Then add previously idle pore bacteria, which now have this new surge of oil to feast on, and the pus pimples and cysts are off and running, causing the exasperating outbreaks.

Controlling this unwelcomed regression to aggressive adolescent acne often requires a three-pronged approach.

First, you need a regular, topical routine consisting of an acne cleanser and toner, along with spot treatments for individual blemishes. These treatments can contain topical antibiotics, salicylic acid, resorcinol, benzoyl peroxide, or other pimple fighting ingredients. Also be sure to apply a light-weight glycolic serum or lotion to your entire face at bedtime to help prevent and treat clogs.

And third… regular visits to a dermatologist to clean out clogs, pimples and cysts will result in faster control.

Yes, you’ve substituted one pill for another, but the antibiotic is only temporary and can be discontinued after your post-Pill acne is finally under control. Which can take just a few months!

For many different reasons you may have decided to pursue a course of birth control pills, and for a variety of other reasons, you may have decided to stop taking them. However, when you stop taking "The Pill" you risk a major acne breakout. The good news is that it's treatable. In this episode of DermTV, Dr. Schultz discusses the causes of post birth control pill acne as well as how to treat post birth control pill acne.